Lara Arif: From UVA Batten to the U.S. Foreign Service

Looking back on her time at UVA Batten, Lara Arif (BA, ‘23) remembers how the program gave structure and direction to her uncertain career goals. She arrived knowing she wanted to help people internationally, but unsure how to build a career around it. “Batten exposed me to the broad field of public service and helped me connect my values to real policy pathways,” she said.

Arif now finds herself where she once only imagined — on the way to a career in the U.S. Foreign Service. In January, she was selected as one of just 45 nationwide recipients of the highly competitive Rangel Graduate Fellowship, which prepares young people for careers in diplomacy through two years of graduate study, internships, mentoring, and professional development activities. Fellows who successfully complete the program and certain entry requirements will receive appointments as Foreign Service officers.

“Being selected finally made my lifelong dream of serving my country as a diplomat feel within reach,” she said. “I was brought to tears as I realized the gravity of what I had just achieved.” Nearly 1,800 applicants had competed for those few fellowship spots. In August, she started her Master’s in International Affairs at the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs.

A foundation built at Batten

Arif credits Batten with giving her the discipline and skills she now uses daily. Memo writing, synthesizing complex readings, and intensive group projects that once felt like hurdles have become tools, she said. Just as important was the sense of community that Batten built. Arif said she consistently felt seen by professors and advisors, not simply as a student, but as a colleague. “That community of mutual respect and support was, and continues to be, one of the most special parts of Batten,” she said.

The UVA experience prompted her take on leadership opportunities, including serving as chair of the committee for the annual Lighting of the Lawn winter holiday event. The role demanded managing a 50-member team, negotiating with administrators, and planning an event that drew 13,000 people. Arif now sees it as an early training ground for diplomacy. “Leadership, negotiation, crisis management — those are the exact qualities that I now see as essential to the work of the Foreign Service,” she said.

Family roots in service

Born in Kurdistan, Arif immigrated to the United States after her parents were granted a visa through a U.S. State Department lottery program. “I grew up with an acute awareness of just how lucky I was to have the opportunity to move to the United States based solely on a lottery,” she said, adding that she was determined to leverage that opportunity. 

At first, that meant excelling in school as a way to repay her parents’ sacrifices. When she was admitted to UVA, it became about finding ways to give back to the country that had transformed her life. “Since then, I have dedicated myself to pursuing a lifelong career in public service as a way to thank the country and the institution that profoundly changed my life,” she said.

Learning through challenge

Her early career experiences reinforced that commitment. Just three months into a job at the U.S. Department of Justice, Arif was sent to Brooklyn to join a team working on a high-stakes corruption trial. 

“It was the most challenging professional experience of my life,” she said. The case demanded 15-hour workdays through the holidays, much of it spent in a hotel room. Still, she approached her position with steady focus, knowing that every task mattered. “Whether assembling a binder at 2 a.m. or joining the attorneys at the table in the courtroom, I knew I was contributing to the greater mission of combating global corruption.” She has since worked on water diplomacy in Kurdistan, adding international experience to her portfolio. 

Looking ahead

Arif sees her Batten cohort of young leaders entering the workforce at a pivotal moment. “With recent layoffs across the public sector and within the Department of State, there will be an urgent need for young professionals committed to a lifetime of public service,” she said. “We have the chance to help shape U.S. foreign policy in a way that is thoughtful, inclusive, and forward-looking, while also serving as empathetic and principled representatives of the United States abroad.”

From Batten classrooms to federal courtrooms, from student governance to international diplomacy, Arif’s trajectory shows a consistent thread. Each experience has deepened her commitment to public service and prepared her for the next step, entering the State Department as a diplomat.

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